The preferred use for applicant's present invention is in a timing apparatus for speed chess and for illustrative purposes, the preferred embodiment will be described in conjunction with this use.
In speed chess, there are normally provided two clocks or timers, one associated with each player. To play the game, each player is assigned a predetermined length of time to checkmate the other. Thus, one player will first start the operation of the opponent's clock and the opponent must then make his move and after the move is completed will stop his clock and simultaneously start the first player's clock. The first player must then make a move and he will then stop his clock and start the opponent's clock. As a result, the time that each player spends making his own moves is totalled automatically in his clock and if that player has not achieved a check mate within the pre-arranged time, he loses. By assigning different time lengths to the players, a poor player can be allotted more time and thus gain a better advantage with a more experienced chess player.
The prior art chess clocks available are subject to considerable abuse by speed chess players since, in the excitement of the game, they will often manually pound the start and stop mechanisms of the clocks and ultimately damage the clocks or cause them to wear out much sooner than would be normal.
In addition to the foregoing problems, there is not really any appropriate indication as to when a player's allotted time is up; that is, has been completed relative to the opponent's time should both allotted time-spans end almost simultaneously. In other words, to avoid the prior art ambiguity, a permanent optical record equivalent to a "photo finish" in horse racing is needed. Nor is there any easy manner of determinging how much longer, after the allotted time has elapsed, the player has needed to complete a move or further moves.
Finally, where non-digital type clocks are employed, they are difficult for the players to read quickly.